And the actor who plays Cal Kestis in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor: Cameron Monaghan wants Cal to team up with Yaddle.

Last night at The Game Awards, we got the first real gameplay trailer for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, as well as a release date of March 17, 2023. Along with that, we got a decent long look at Jedi hero Cal Kestis, a young man who has undergone massive changes since the end of Fallen Order.

First, he’s got a new look – Cal has ditched the poncho he wore in Fallen Order and now sports a more adventurous, almost Han Solo look. He’s grown some facial hair, his lightsabers are developing, and he’s getting stronger and more resourceful.

But the changes are not only visible on the outside. Ahead of the trailer’s release, IGN spoke with Cal actor Cameron Monaghan about how the five years between Fallen Order and Survivor affected his character. And while he’s still very much the Cal Kestis we knew then, the position of the Jedi and his own precarious position in his attempts to save the order are starting to wear on him.

“Cal’s world view is also starting to change,” Monaghan said. “Desperate times call for desperate measures, and it is becoming very difficult for him to even understand what he is fighting for or where he should be going.

“The Empire is expanding rapidly, very aggressively, even into the smallest and most remote parts of the galaxy. And I think from his perspective, it can be very, very lonely going from planet to planet and seeing only the increasingly desperate situation. I can imagine that it can definitely be stressful for someone.”

Although Monaghan denied that any visual resemblance between Cal and Han Solo went beyond the clothes (“Nobody’s Harrison Ford but Harrison Ford,” he said), he added that the two share some unintended similarities.

“[Cal] is more mature, more robust and has been worn by time and situations,” Monaghan said. “She’s still pretty young. But I actually think she’d look a little older than she really is because she’s been through a lot. And that’s what I wanted the show to reflect, to show that she’s still she’s always young at heart, but she also has a look beyond her years. And there’s a wisdom and a self-awareness about her that I think is interesting, but sometimes you have to be a little bit of a villain to make it in the world. You have to be a little bit of a chick and know that should, when and how to fight back.”

Given the galactic situation and the fact that audiences already know how it will play out before A New Hope, we asked Monaghan if there is any hope for Cal’s personal happy ending.

“It depends on what you define as a happy ending, right?” he replied. “If you make a difference that makes sense, and if you can achieve the things you set out to do, I think that’s satisfying or meaningful in some way.

“One of the interesting things we’re doing with the exploration of the Jedi is what it means to be on the Right side of the force. Especially when you’re in increasingly desperate and increasingly difficult situations, and you don’t necessarily have a right answer.” >

As bleak as this all sounds for Cal, the Cal Kestis we know can be light-hearted. Especially near his buddy BD-1. BD-1 is still with Cal on Survivor, even though other crewmates like Cere are off on their own. And Monaghan is having fun with the robot, too.

Yaddle and Cal, exploring the universe together, forever.

“We have an amazing actor, Gideon Emery, who is on set, and we have a 3D [life-size] printed version of BD. [Emery] has a snuff, which is a nose whistle, that he wears on his face. It’s it’s like a little piece of plastic that… And so he makes expressive sounds to imitate BD and puppeteer him and move him around and carry him around, so to speak.

“Gideon has been there since the beginning. We had a shoot where there was no BD and I was basically just like, ‘There’s a character missing from the scenes.’ and gives energy.”

While Cal and BD-1 remain a dream team, there’s another character that Monaghan said would make a dream team for Cal, and a slightly unusual one at that: Yaddle, the Jedi Master.

“Yaddle and Cal, we’d explore the universe together,” Monaghan said wistfully, then added with a laugh, “No, I don’t know. I think we might meet a couple of people who… The between the first game and this one, I can’t really say for sure, just that there were some really cool things. And I was really excited about what we were going to do.”

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is scheduled for release on March 17, 2023 for Xbox, PC, and PS5. You still have plenty of time to make up for Fallen Order before it appears, if you missed it. Our review of Star Wars: Fallen Order you can read it here.